1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to lawn mowers and more specifically to electrically-started walk-behind lawn mowers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Walk-behind lawn mowers are commonly equipped with pull-type recoil starters for starting the engine. For some applications, however, it is desirable to provide the engine with an electric start capability. Accordingly, a battery must be provided on the mower to power the electrical start mechanism.
Many of today's walk-behind lawn mowers equipped with batteries for electric start capability carry the battery on the housing of the lawn mower. The battery may be exposed or encased in a plastic cover to protect it against moisture and sunlight. If the battery is not encased, it is directly exposed to the sun's rays which can promote self-discharge, that is, leaking of the battery's electrical charge to its ground connection. Further, exposed batteries are directly subjected to moisture and rain which can cause the battery to short out and/or cause corrosion of the metallic parts of the battery. If the battery is encased in a plastic cover, the ultraviolet sunlight will, over time, cause the cover to degrade, exposing the battery to moisture and sunlight.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a mounting for a battery on a walk-behind lawn mower which avoids the above problems. Ideally, it would be desirable to provide a battery mounting compartment wherein the battery would be protected from the sunlight and exposure to moisture.